With a slow, deep breath, he noticed they were very near their destination. Remembering the combs in his pocket, he took them out and held them up to Evie. He cleared his throat. “I have been meaning to return these to you. They were falling out of your hair the night we were escaping Montague.”
Turning from the window, Evie’s eyes widened. She reached out and he noticed the tremble in her hand as she took them. “These were my mother’s,” she said, running a finger over the gold teeth. “I thought I had lost them.” Then she glanced up, her eyes softening in gratitude. “Thank you.”
Typically, Jeremy would have made some wolfish reply, followed up with some flirting and teasing. But Evie was nowhere near typical and didn’t deserve the typical response. Instead, he gave her the answer in his heart. “I was happy to keep them from getting lost. Especially now that I know how important they are to you.”
Her eyes swept back down to the combs and she gave a smile. But when the carriage slowed and began the turn into the drive, Evie stiffened and hastily placed the combs into her drawstring purse.
Jeremy knew she was nervous about how people would react to learning they had married. He asked Priscilla to send notes out after he and Evie left, which meant the whole country probably knew by now. And as the wheels shuddered to a stop and he saw the front door burst open, he was certain the notes had reached everyone. Lord Ashton marched forward, looking to do murder, followed by a stiff-lipped Belle, who struggled to keep up with her nephew.
The carriage door opened and a footman assisted Evie to the ground as Ash came to a halt. “Is this true?” he demanded of his sister, holding a crumpled note in his hand.
Jeremy hurried out of the carriage and pulled Evie behind him. He faced the younger man, realizing Lord Ashton was no longer the tall, thin boy he’d faced after breaking the engagement six years ago. His new brother-in-law had gained at least two stone in muscle and three inches in height.
Ash’s dark eyes hardened and his hands fisted at his sides. Jeremy knew what the man was about to do, but couldn’t move away. Evie might get struck on accident. So, he stood there to take the blow.
It didn’t come. Instead, Evie dashed around him and pulled on her brother’s right arm. “Ash, stop it. This is silly.”
Ash shook his head. “After everything he’s done to you, Evie, you aren’t going to let me hurt him? Just a little?”
For the first time in days, Evie produced a wide, genuine smile. It lit up her face, transforming her from lovely to gorgeous. When she smiled, her outside caught up to the beauty within her. Jeremy had a difficult time looking away.
“Now, Ash, there really is no need.” She patted his arm. “As his wife, I can make him miserable any time I wish.”
Jeremy narrowed his eyes. What, exactly, did that mean? Before he could ask, his wife was leading her brother into the mansion.
As he started to follow, Belle stepped to his side and spoke softly. “What are you doing?”
“Getting clothes for my wife before taking her home.” He stopped to remove his snuffbox and opened the gold and sapphire lid.
She turned to him with raised brows. “In the coded message she sent to me, Evie told me the marriage isn’t real.” She glanced around to make sure no one listened. “Ghost told me about the men in robes wearing pentagrams and speaking of their virgin sacrifice being thwarted.” She placed her hand on his arm. “So, this is just for show, for Montague’s benefit?” Her fingers dug into his coat. “Let me warn you, Rogue. When you cast Evie off again, even though she knows it’s coming this time, it will destroy her. Be prepared to have that on your conscious.” She pulled her hand away. “If you even have one.”
He snapped his snuffbox closed and placed it back into his pocket, not at all liking that Evie had sent Belle a coded message. Nor did he like being warned in such a manner. He had no intentions of casting Evie aside and was about to say so when Belle added, “You should let me take her to France. I can protect her there.”
“No.” He slashed a hand through the air. “Now, if you will excuse me, I would like to hurry things along here so I can go check on my cousin.”
He took a step toward the door but halted when she said, “Elder is most angry.” Her voice went low. “He said it is not safe to come to him, but he will come to you. Soon.”
Jeremy nodded and entered the house. He knew the news of his marriage to Evie would mean he would have to stay away from Guardian meetings for a while. No doubt, Montague was intelligent enough to guess who helped rescue Evie, which just cast an enormous amount of suspicion on him. Especially now that everyone knew he hadn’t been the one attacked and was bedridden.
The butler met him in the foyer with a bow. “Pardon, my lord. Lord Ashton wishes a word in his study. If you will come with me?”
With a nod, Jeremy followed the man into an oak paneled room that smelled of beeswax and leather. The butler bowed and closed the door as Lord Ashton rose from his chair behind the carved desk. He held out his hand to one of the black leather chairs. “Take a seat, Fielding.” He turned to the liquor cart at his right. “Whiskey?”
Jeremy inclined his head and took his seat, wondering why the pleasantries. Didn’t the man just wish to remove his head? He accepted the drink and took a sip, eyeing the large fellow before him over the crystal rim. Something bothered Ashton. The man took two gulps of his drink, loosed his cravat, took another gulp, then sat in his chair before finally looking up.
Raising a brow, Jeremy asked, “Exactly, why am I here?”
With a defeated sigh, Ashton opened the top left draw of his desk, rifled through several papers, and retrieved one. The man drained his glass, then slid the document across the polished wood.
Jeremy leaned forward, glanced at it, and settled back in his seat. It was the betrothal contract drawn up years ago by the Earl of Ashton and Marquess of Fielding. He knew every word.
Ashton cleared his throat. He started to say something, but stood and poured himself another drink before returning to his seat. “It says here,” his finger followed a line written in the middle of the document, “upon your marriage to my sister, I am to pay you this exorbitant dowry.”
Ah, so there it was. And, no doubt, the reason the man was so angry when they arrived. Jeremy thought for once in the man’s life, Ashton was acting out of love and protection for his sister. Obviously not. He gnashed his teeth as anger blazed a white-hot trail through his middle. Hadn’t anyone ever been there for Evie?
Well, that had just changed.
Setting aside his nearly full drink, Jeremy rose. “Do you have a pen and ink?” he asked calmly, even though his insides were boiling with anger.
Ash gave him a curious glance, but opened a drawer and supplied the items. Jeremy dipped the pen into the ink, spun the document around, and marked through the part where he would receive the hefty ten-thousand-pound dowry. He hardly needed the money, anyway. Then he scratched his signature out to the side and set the pen down. “Is there anything else you are concerned about?” he asked.
Ash, who had sat back in his chair once he realized he wouldn’t have to come up with so much blunt, suddenly straightened. His eyes slid away as he began. “Well, now that you mention it…” His fingers drummed the polished wood before him.
Jeremy checked the ticking ormolu on the mantle. Nearly four o’clock. He would usually enjoy taking his time to make the man squirm, but today, he was in a rush. Shaking his head, he asked, “How much do you need?”
Ash went still, then glanced up, relieved. “I’ve had to pour a fortune in renovating the old estate.” He paused to scowl. “Just adding the water closet alone makes me cringe.”
Removing the small booklet encased in soft brown leather from his pocket, Jeremy opened the cover and reached down for the pen. “Do you have a figure in mind,” he waved the pen in the air a couple of times, “or should I just guess at what you might need?”
“Five thousand pounds,” Ash blurted out.
&nbs
p; Jeremy raised a brow. That told him a lot about his new brother-in-law. He scribbled out the bank note, knowing the man had been spending much of the past year gambling. Years ago, he had heard whispers of Ash striking some deal with a wealthy ship merchant just before the man passed away. To Jeremy’s knowledge, that company was the only one Ash owned still making a profit.
Well, he would just see how acute his suspicions were. Placing the note on the desk, Jeremy kept his fingers on the paper and said, “Double or nothing for the high card.”
Ash jerked in surprise, his brows shooting up. Then the corner of his mouth tipped up and his eyes glimmered with excitement. “You’d pay another five thousand pounds if I win?”
Yes, the man definitely had the fever. Jeremy recognized it well since his own mother was afflicted. He gave a sharp nod. “Of course.”
Ash pulled open the top draw and removed the deck of cards, then set it beside the bank note. “Care to shuffle?”
Jeremy took the cards and scrambled them about a bit, then set the deck back down. After rubbing his hands together, Ash turned over the Jack of Diamonds. He threw his head back, crowing with delight.
Jeremy, knowing full well he was about to beat the poor fellow, turned over the Ace of Spades.
The smile slipped right off of Ash’s face. He leaned forward, his eyes bulging with disbelief. “I don’t believe it,” he whispered.
Jeremy scooped up the note and shoved it into his pocket, along with the brown leather booklet. “And that is why you should no longer gamble.”
He started to turn away when Ash rose so forcefully from his chair, it crashed against the wooden floor planks. The man rounded the desk and stood before Jeremy with crossed arms and hatred sparking from his eyes.
“You do not seem surprised in the least about the outcome.” Ash’s eyes narrowed to slits. “That leads me to think you knew what would happen here.”
Of course, he cheated. He’d learned from the very best card sharp who amassed quite a bit of wealth with his uncanny ability to count the cards. The man happened to be his own father’s half-brother. Jeremy always looked forward to Frederick’s visits and learning more ‘tricks’ as Freddy called them. He would practice every day, always looking forward to showing his uncle how far he’d advanced between visits.
And then one frigid Christmas evening, when Jeremy was home from Eton to celebrate the holiday with family, his father had a fight with Freddy and the man never again stepped foot on the property. Jeremy always wondered what they fought about and why neither man sought out the other to make amends. He also wondered why Freddy never sought him out after his father’s death. That still bothered him to think about.
Jeremy focused back on the present, squared his shoulders and faced Ash. He was trying to teach the idiot a lesson about gambling one’s life away. Yet, he didn’t think now was a good time to fully explain what he had done. The man was unstable at the moment. Instead, he feigned outrage to be called a cheat and crossed is own arms. “Careful, old man, lest you say something you come to regret.”
A vein throbbed at Ash’s right temple, and his jaw clenched several times, then he scooped up the deck of cards. “We will start over, and I will shuffle this time.” He went still, his eyes daring Jeremy to refuse.
Jeremy gave a nod. “As you wish.” It didn’t matter who shuffled at this point. The cards had been in order when Ash initially retrieved them from the drawer, and that was all Jeremy needed to know to count the cards and approximate with incredibly good accuracy what he chose to draw. Sometimes he would draw a king, a queen if he wasn’t paying enough attention. But he never drew lower than that.
Ash slapped the cards onto the wood, making the pen skitter across the slick surface and over the other side of the desk. Then he spread them out. “Point to the card you want and I will turn it over for you,” he demanded. “I don’t want you even touching the cards.”
Jeremy nearly rolled his eyes. Instead, he shrugged and started to point to the Ace of Spades, but decided at the last minute to give the fellow a sporting chance. He then tapped his finger before the King of Spades.
When Ash flipped the card over, his eyes went wide. He stared at the card for six full seconds, his face going a nasty red-purple hue. Then the man snarled something Jeremy couldn’t make out and turned over the Three of Diamonds.
With a string of curses, the poor fellow rounded the desk and poured himself another drink. He downed it and turned, much less steady on his feet. “You have the devil’s own luck, Fielding. Everyone knows that.” He poured another drink and took a deep gulp. “I have no luck at all. Deuced unfair.” When he downed the rest of the whiskey in his glass, he shook his head, swaying a bit. “I could sure use some of your luck before I lose everything.”
Jeremy didn’t like the sound of that. He imagined what his mother would do if she didn’t have him to come to her rescue all the time. She would spend the rest of her life in debtor’s prison. Pursing his lips, he asked, “Why don’t you sell Ross Shipping to me? I will make you an incredibly generous offer.”
Ash heaved a sigh. “Can’t. The purchase came with conditions. One was I couldn’t sell it without Miranda’s—” He stopped and shook his head, then looked up with red, bleary eyes. “That company is the only thing I have left of any value. Everything else is either gone or entailed and losing money. Losing lots of money.”
Taking pity on the fellow, Jeremy came around the desk and put a hand on his shoulder. “Now that we are family, why don’t you allow me to glance at your books? Perhaps there is some way I can help.”
With a miserable nod, Ash said, “Why not? It certainly couldn’t hurt.” He turned and opened the bottom desk drawer. “Oh, wait, this is Father’s last ledger. Mine are here,” he said and reached for the middle drawer.
“Hold on, there, let me see your Father’s ledger once more.” Jeremy glanced down and kept his shock from showing. A small silver snake coiled up in the corner of the black cover stared up at him. It matched the one he had filched from Montague’s desk. “May I take that one with me? I would like to start there.”
“Take the miserable thing, if you think it will help,” Ash said and turned to straighten his chair.
Jeremy retrieved the ledger. Oh, it helped all right. He might finally find an answer to why his father had died grasping one of Viper’s rings.
Chapter 15
Evie knew it was a mistake to marry Jeremy. Even though they weren’t really married. She’d moved into the marchioness suite and stared at the door separating her bedroom from his for the past three nights. Wondering. Hoping. Dreading. Hoping again. Then chiding herself for thinking such foolish, wicked thoughts. Only to start the whole wretched process over again.
When the mission was resolved and Viper and his Nest couldn’t harm anyone anymore, she’d skip off to France with Belle and not give Jeremy another thought.
Liar.
With a sigh, Evie shook her head and left her room to wait for Jeremy downstairs. She’d worked for months, believing she had finally wrenched the man from her heart. Only to have him sneak back inside within five minutes of being around him once again. What she needed was distance, she told herself, then frowned as she stepped down the last step. That would be impossible for a while longer. Especially now that they were, as far as the world was concerned, married.
Married to Jeremy. She came to a halt in the center of the hall, the hem of her emerald-green dress swirling around her ankles, and she pressed her knuckles against her lips. That had been a dream for so long, but she realized she had been in love with a charming rogue. A man everyone worshiped, who could do no wrong, who always said and did the exact right thing.
But that wasn’t the real Jeremy. He’d given up his life to work for an organization that helped people. He rescued women he didn’t even know because they had no one else to help them. Evie swallowed back a groan. He allowed the world to believe he had seduced and then married a lady to secretly save her life.
The real Jeremy was even more dangerous to her heart.
Footsteps brought Evie around, face to face with the man who continuously flooded her thoughts. His eyes raked up and down her low-cut evening dress and a wolfish smile slowly spread across his lips. “You look exceptionally beautiful this evening, my lovely pet,” he said in a soft purr.
So do you, she wanted to say. Evie didn’t want to admit it, but Jeremy in evening black always did strange things to her insides. She quivered and went hot and cold at the same time. Just as she was doing now.
He reached out and she held her breath as he lifted the glowing square emerald resting just an inch above her cleavage. “The Fielding emeralds never looked better,” he said. When his fingertips grazed her bare skin, she couldn’t stop the odd sound in the back of her throat or the fire that erupted low in her abdomen. Her breaths came out shorter and faster, and because she couldn’t stand another second of the delicious torture, she stumbled back a step, off balance.
That only made things worse. Jeremy reached out and pulled her to him. “Easy, pet,” he whispered into the top of her head. “I won’t see you hurt.”
Evie closed her eyes against the onslaught of emotions warring within her. She took a shaky breath, inhaling his clove and cherry scent, then raised her head. That was a terrible mistake. His hazel eyes grew dark and filled with wicked promise as he glanced down to her lips and back.
Carefully, Evie stepped back. She crossed her arms as though suddenly chilled. “It’s too late for that, I am afraid,” she admitted in a quivery voice.
When he cocked his head to one side, drawing his brows together, she wanted to tell him why it was too late for her getting hurt, but stopped herself in time. Instead, she glanced toward the stairs. “How is Myran?”
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